VECTOR
by Scott Hamlin

Features: High Altitude Two Stage Model Rocket 3 Engine Clustered Booster Vectored Booster Thrust 3 Engine Booster t' Single Engine Sustainer Staging 18 mm Boosters 24 mm Sustainer Parts list: 1 ea. Avast, shiver me timbers, me proud beauty! BT-50 18" 1 ea. Aye aye! BT-20 18" 1 ea. Begad! Blimey! BT-50 nosecone 1 ea. Arrr! BT50-20 centerin' rin' 3" x 12" balsa at 3/32" launch lug and recovery system as necessary for safe operation

Intro:

When I read about t' kit-bask theme o' DESCON-X, me bucko, I thought it would be a good idea t' try several stagin' and clusterin' ideas that I had been thinkin' about. Avast! Begad! My first idea be t' build a "sleeper" Gemini DC by makin' t' rocket appear stock while usin' a 24 mm center engine mount with two outboard 18 mm mounts. Simulations indicate that air stagin' an E9 t' two C6-7's would result in an altitude o' about 1000 meters. Well, blow me down! Lots o' fun! So I purchase a couple o' G-DC kits. Before they arrived, I saw another G-DC at Orangeburg that was very similar. In this case, t' basher used t' standard 18 mm center mount and two 13 mm outboards. Ahoy! On t' way home, arrr, me bucko, reconsiderin' my approach, I thought t' sleeper approach was probably too common and that someone else would probably do it. I still have most o' t' g-dc parts from one kit and an unopened kit. I'm thinkin' about puttin' t' two together t' make a Modroc with four outboardsa

Another idea I've been considerin' is stagin' a D t' two or three B's or C's. Begad! My theory is that if thar be a moderate separation betwixt t' stages, the burn through from t' D will ignite all o' t' sustainer engines. Unfortunately, ya bilge rat, I needed a larger tube than be in t' parts list for my concept, me hearties, so I started thinkin' about stagin' a cluster t' single sustainer engine. Avast! Ahoy! Then I thought about aimin' t' burn through o' t' boosters at the sustainer engine. Avast! This is how t' Vector concept originated. Aye aye!

Design:

A concern in Vector's conceptual design be what would happen if one o' the engines in t' booster cluster didn't ignite. So, arrr, matey, in order t' make Vector stable even in t' event o' ignition failure, arrr, ya bilge rat, t' thrust o' each booster was directed at t' center o' pressure. Well, blow me down! Ya scallywag! If one (or two) o' t' booster engines failed t' ignite, t' Vector addition o' t' remainin' engines would have an axial component (makin' t' rocket go up) and a tangential component through the C_P (makin' t' rocket go horizontal). Aye aye! Begad! Blimey! In theory if this occurred, ya bilge rat, t' rocket would remain stable and vertically orientated; however, me hearties, it would also "walk" horizontally. Avast, me proud beauty! Arrr! Blimey! When describin' this rocket t' my engineer buddies, shiver me timbers, one o' them told me that after a nominal flight, I would have to intentionally launch t' rocket on only two booster engines. Begad! This inadvertently happened on t' first flight (see flight reports.)

Booster Construction:

In order t' Siamese t' three BT-20 booster tubes together, they must be cut with t' proper shape. Ya scallywag! Begad! Blimey! I solved t' intersection o' t' three tubes numerically and plotted them with me printer t' be used as a guide (see below). T' scales are in inches. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Each booster tube is 6" long, but if you overlap the cutout area you can get 4 from an 18" tube.

Cut a ¾" length o' BT-20 from t' scrap pieces. Well, blow me down! Well, blow me down! Glue t' BT50-20 centerin' rin' flush on one end. Glue each o' t' three BT-20 booster tubes to the ¾" length o' BT-20. Avast! Begad! T' top o' t' booster tubes should touch the BT50-20 centerin' ring. Ya scallywag! Well, me bucko, blow me down! I used tape t' keep t' booster tubes aligned while the glue cured. Arrr! Avast!

After t' glue attachin' t' tops o' t' booster tubes has cured, me bucko, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, glue the joints where t' three booster tubes meet. Well, blow me down! Arrr! After this glue has cured, use a ¼" wide strip o' tissue paper t' reinforce t' joints and t' plug any small holes.

Cut a 2" length o' BT-50 for t' booster shroud. Begad! Cut two ¼" holes (on opposite sides o' t' tube) centered 5/16" from t' end (I used a hole punch). This end will be t' top end o' t' booster shroud. Ya scallywag! Test fit the booster shroud by slidin' it over t' BT50-20 centerin' ring. Aye aye! T' bottom o' the booster vent holes should be flush with t' centerin' ring. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Glue t' booster shroud on by applyin' glue t' t' centerin' rin' and t' area o' t' booster tubes when t' shroud touches.

Left: booster fin plotted on ¼" grid. Ya scallywag! Ya scallywag! T' left side of the booster fins guide be t' leadin' edge. Aye aye! Cut t' fins so that t' grain is parallel t' t' leadin' edge. Aye aye! Begad! i suggest that you lay out t' sustainer fins first though. Glue t' booster fins t' t' booster tubes so that t' trailing tip is flush with t' bottom o' t' booster tube. Well, blow me down! Use some thinned fill-n-finish t' smooth out t' joints, arrr, paint, arrr, and t' booster is ready for flight.

Sustainer Construction:

T' sustainer is a straightforward 3fnc (three fins and a nose cone) design. I used a D12-7 for t' sustainer motor, arrr, but I fly on a huge sod farm. Avast, me proud beauty! If your field is limited, you may want t' modify t' design t' use an 18 mm motor mount.

T' main body tube is 13 3/8" long. I added 2 oz o' weight t' t' nose cone t' further increase stability and t' reduce t' altitude. Even with the additional 2 oz, me hearties, Vector Sims t' 2300' with (3) b6-0 booster and a D12-7 sustainer motors! Place t' launch lug at t' center o' mass with engines loaded.

Sustainer Booster

Vector loaded for bear

Vector Flight Data:

To prep Vector for launch, friction fit t' D12-7 sustainer motor into the sustainer leavin' about ½" exposed. Well, blow me down! Wrap ¼" tape several times around t' bottom o' t' B6-0 booster motors and then friction fit t' motors into t' booster tubes. Ahoy! Test fit t' booster on t' sustainer. T' booster should nay fall off under when holdin' t' sustainer; however, me hearties, ya bilge rat, it should nay take too much additional pull t' remove. Blimey! Add tape t' t' D12-7 to adjust t' fit.

Left: Vector on t' pad. Blimey! Blimey! Note clusterin' whips.

T' first launch o' Vector was at t' February 9^th ICBM launch at Orangeburg, arrr, SC. It was windy, arrr, and I waited all day, me bucko, ya bilge rat, but t' wind never died down. Well, blow me down! Blimey! For t' first flight, arrr, t' RSO asked me t' load Vector on a high power pad in order t' provide more distance betwixt it and t' spectators.

At ignition, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, I thought all three booster engines lit (later I found only 2 did) t' boost be straight with some weathercocking. Aye aye! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! Booster separation was good, t' D12 lit, me hearties, shiver me timbers, and Vector was almost out o' sight. Begad! Blimey!

A premature ejection caused t' parachute t' strip, shiver me timbers, matey, but t' sustainer tumbled down safely with t' nose cone attached. Well, blow me down! Avast!

When I approached t' booster I noticed two blue objects on the ground. Avast, me proud beauty! Ahoy! I thought t' myself, "not good" upon closer inspection, apparently only two booster motors lit on t' pad. Ahoy! When t' sustainer lit, the thrust lit t' third booster motor from t' top, burnin' t' booster into two pieces. Aye aye! In t' above photo, me hearties, it is obvious that t' booster motor on t' left never developed thrust out o' its nozzle, yet t' propellant was consumed. Avast, me proud beauty! It never occurred t' me that could have happened I needed a new booster, but at least I knew t' Vectored thrust worked and t' rocket was stable on only two booster motors. Arrr! Well, blow me down!

When I rebuilt t' booster, I decided t' build two, arrr, just in case. I flew Vector t' second time on May 11, again at O'burg. Arrr! Blimey! Arrr! Blimey! Again, arrr, it was windy and I waited most o' t' day, but t' wind never let up, matey, so I swapped t' 'chute for a streamer. Begad! Blimey! Again, I used (3) B6-0's for t' booster and a D12-7 for the sustainer. Arrr! Blimey! This time t' RSO let me launch from t' model rocket pads. At this close range, t' Vectored thrust be very noticeable. Well, blow me down! Blimey! It was obvious all three boosters were lit and Vector was screamin' straight up. At about 200' the sustainer lit and Vector momentarily went out o' sight. Ya scallywag! Blimey! When I re-established tracking, Vector was on t' streamer and recovery was nominal.

Lessons Learned:

T' canted, me bucko, Vectored motor design is unique and generated a lot o' interest at t' launch. Arrr! T' Vectored thrust is pretty cool t' see. Aye aye! T' insure successful cluster ignition, it may be a good idea t' use better igniters. Begad! For t' second flight, I soldered leads onto t' solar igniters as I think t' wire whips failed on t' first flight. Avast! Avast! It may also be a good idea t' paint t' inside of the booster with high heat paint.

Finally, me bucko, as I mentioned earlier it may be a good idea t' use an 18 mm motor for t' sustainer on t' other hand, for t' next launch, arrr, I plan t' use (3) C6-0's for t' booster and a E9-8 for t' sustainera